How To Handyma’am | A Home Improvement Comedy Podcast · Samantha Pearl|Lic. Builder, Emily Pearl Reist|Lic. Builder, and Arly Streed

Ep 14: Feeling Safe in Your Own Home: Your DIY Security Checklist

March 6, 2026·1 hr 3 min·3 clips

Menopause is a grab bag of 147 random symptoms nobody warns you about.

They open with the show’s usual welcome-back energy and a dedication to Aunt Rita. The hosts also shout out the listeners who say they are hooked on the chaos. A new game is introduced: three minutes of chaos. Each person gets one minute. Nobody expects the timer to hold them, and they mostly know it. A listener question comes first. The crew then drifts into a bit of trade talk about paint peel and poly peel, which is exactly the kind of half-gross, half-useful detail the show likes to keep alive. After that, the episode shifts into a tale from the field. Arlie finished a custom bathroom storage project in an older home with beautiful details. The bathroom had been redone with off-white subway tile and a striking floor, and the customer wanted cabinets that would not jut into a small room or take over the sightline. So the team used the wall cavities between studs to build three inset cabinets for toiletries, medicine, and makeup. The cabinets disappear into the wall except for the trim. Their insides were wallpapered with the customer’s favorite paper. The shelves were made from leftover floor tile. Custom doors went on next. Then came old-looking latches that fit the age of the house instead of fighting it. Somewhere in there, Arlie wanted to commit homicide, because that is apparently part of every real project. The point still held. The work got finished. From there Arlie moves into the core teaching: how to be safe in your own home, especially if you are a woman living alone. The advice stays blunt and practical. Buy tools at estate sales if you can. Borrow them from neighbors or friends if you only need them for a short time. Check the library, because some libraries really do lend tools. The ending keeps the same working-person tone, treating preparedness as something you build with small, sensible moves rather than fear.

As heard by us

A funny, practical home-safety listen that turns chaos into useful advice once Arlie gets going.

How to Handyman starts in a burst of chaos, then settles into a listener question, a few field stories, and Arlie's practical advice on staying safe at home, especially for a woman living alone.

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Why you'd press play

You want a funny, no-nonsense safety reset for living alone.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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